Russia is looking to expand its pilot Islamic banking programme as demand for Sharia-compliant financial products continues to grow, both in the European nation and throughout the world, stated the country’s largest lender, Sber.
Staying true to the Islamic banking’s core principles of prohibiting interest-based lending and speculative transactions, Russia launched the pilot initiative in 2023 in four predominantly Muslim regions, including the Republic of Tatarstan, and later extended it until 2028. The initiative relies on mechanisms such as leasing, instalment sales, profit-sharing arrangements and asset-backed financing.
Taking note of the fact that an estimated 20 million Muslims live in Russia, including more than two million in Tatarstan, Sber senior vice president Oleg Ganeev said demand was strongest for everyday banking products like accounts, payment services, cards, and deposits.
The lender, under the pilot programme, has also launched digital sukuk products, Islamic bonds designed to comply with Sharia principles, Ganeev said while speaking at the “Russia-Islamic World Forum”, an Islamic-themed conference held in Tatarstan’s capital, Kazan.
Admitting that Russia’s Islamic banking sector still lacks clear regulation and unified standards, Anatoly Aksakov, chairman of the State Duma Committee on the Financial Market, said at the Kazan Forum that the country could adopt its first Islamic banking standard within a month.
As per Aksakov, Russian lawmakers and financial institutions have already identified “eight priority areas for development” based on standards used by the Bahrain-based Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI).
Tatarstan Economic Minister Midhat Shagiakhmetov said that the republic had been developing Islamic finance for around 15 years and now offers about 35 Sharia-compliant financial products. Over half of all transactions under Russia’s pilot program are currently carried out in the region.
Apart from expanding the pilot programme beyond the four participating regions, Russian officials have also discussed increasing the usage of Islamic finance instruments to attract foreign investment. Aksakov, in January 2026, revealed Russia’s plan to open its first Islamic bank. As per the head of the State Duma Committee on the Financial Market, consultations were underway between officials and domestic businesses, including those serving Muslim communities.
Aksakov envisioned the project giving a significant boost to so-called partnership financing in Russia, a market estimated at about 1 trillion rubles (USD 12.7 billion).